


your shampoo scent in the flowers

by elvass



Series: shampoo [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, F/M, Iwaizumi loves kdramas, Love Triangles, M/M, Pining, Slow Burn, Unrequited Love, oikawa is a dick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:46:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22731199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elvass/pseuds/elvass
Summary: “So, you’re telling me you smelled Hinata’s shampoo and you just went there? From Nagano to Tokyo at his house?” Atsumu’s weak smile is the answer he's looking for. It’s still too weird to see him smiling and not grinning.“You don’t understand Hajime-kun, I was in this huge garden with my whole family, and then it was like time stopped. I really thought he was there! I had to go, I couldn’t stop myself, I had to tell him” still not very impressed Hajime has to understand that the one in front of him is Atsumu, very brilliant in court, not so much with his feelings.“And what kind of smell was it? Do you know what brand he uses?” Iwaizumi sees how a nice tint of red spreads on Atsumu’s face. He smirks, he looks really cute like this actually.“Ehm… it’s actually the one from Tooru-kun’s advertisement” Hajime laughs,of course it’s the one from fucking Oikawa Tooru.
Relationships: Bokuto Koutarou & Iwaizumi Hajime, Hinata Shouyou & Iwaizumi Hajime, Hinata Shouyou/Miya Atsumu, Iwaizumi Hajime & Kuroo Tetsurou, Iwaizumi Hajime & Miya Atsumu, Iwaizumi Hajime & Sakusa Kiyoomi, Iwaizumi Hajime & Ushijima Wakatoshi, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Kuroo Tetsurou/Sawamura Daichi, One-Sided Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou - Relationship, One-Sided Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio - Relationship, Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi, past Iwaizumi Hajime/Original Female Character(s)
Series: shampoo [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1634533
Comments: 7
Kudos: 50





	1. I.

_“And even if I’m going to have both a crush on you and Julia Roberts you can’t complain, understand?” he said pointing his fingers to her, Dan Sae-woo was a bit taken aback by this question, and her cheeks flushed a little “Because you poked me in the side, so I’m allowed to have a crush on you” he kept saying while smiling._

_“It’s not like I can tell you not to have a crush on me or something...” she pouted, but Mr. Light just smiled even more and brighter-_

“What the fuck Kuroo, I was watching it!”

Friday night is usually when Iwaizumi Hajime catches up with the dramas he missed during the week. So, Kuroo Tetsurou closing his computer and being a dick about it it’s not nice.

Before starting university it was easier for Hajime to just sit on the sofa of his house with his mother and little sister Hana and watch whatever sap tv series was on. The only people he had to worry about were his twin older brothers Hayato and Haru, but that was easy. Few fists fights and that was it. He’s a sap, but that doesn’t mean he couldn’t throw some punches around. He loves that romantic shit too much to let his brothers ruin it for him. But growing up is a bitch, and he had to move. So, changes were in order.

Iwaizumi started _Wok of Love_ just three days before, and even though he just had time to watch four episodes, he truly loves Mr. Light\- _the gangster_ _._ It’s not a quality show (see _Chocolate_ or _Crash Landing on You_ , just too good), but he likes the storyline and it makes him hungry with all that food. Not what he usually looks for in a tv show, but it’s still better than the one where the guy was the main female-lead step-father, even though he was at least five years younger than she was.

“Yeah, and you’ve been watching crap for five months straight now” he condemns him. Maybe Kuroo is right, and he has been watching more dramas than usual, but that’s not a bad thing “tonight you are coming with me to Bokuto’s party.”

“Is Wakatoshi going?” he asks, and when his answer is negative Iwaizumi grunts annoyingly. “He has a paper to finish, you don’t” Kuroo has always been a whiny bitch, but before he can even reply that he would rather study statistics (Iwaizumi fucking hates stats), the black-haired young man just grabs his computer and puts it on the highest shelf in the room.

“Sawamura and I got you a blind date, you _have to_ come” now, he’s not annoyed at the gesture, but Iwaizumi doesn’t like the intentions. Kuroo just wants to have someone who is willing to do double dates with him and Sawamura. He wants to go to karaoke on Thursday nights and brunches on Sunday mornings. Other people in their groups are in a relationship, but Kuroo wants him and Iwaizumi hates that. 

Hajime admits that the reaction is a little bit dramatic. At the end of it, he just needs to go to the party and whatever, but he’s not really interested. Before he was all about love at first sight and happily ever after, but he’s at that point that he really wants to be by himself. The only one opposed being Kuroo. 

It’s been four months since his ex and him have not talked to each other. They didn’t actually break up, _to be clear_ , but five months of radio silence made the magic and… _BAM_! He was single all of a sudden. In dramas, the main characters always wait at least six months before moving on, Iwaizumi is only waiting for that. He still needs time to figure it out his life. 

Not that these past four months he didn’t think about romance and love, but the result was that he just needs some alone time. A degree, volleyball, and writing are his priorities. He chose Waseda University not only for the amazing sport’s scholarship they offered him but also because its literature program is one of the best in the country. He loves it there, especially since he is able to express his passion for romantic love stories freely.

“You just have to come to the party, it’s not going to be that bad,” Kuroo says, and Iwaizumi really wants to believe it somehow. He loves Kuroo with all of his heart, but when he says that _'it’s not going to be bad'_ , really anything can happen. He knows it by first-hand experience. Every time Kuroo tries to fix something, it ends up being worse than before. Though thinking about having to meet someonemakes him cringe. He is not really a fan of blind dates, and due to his latest experience, he’ll gladly pass. 

And if the love part is the only problem, Iwaizumi doesn’t even want to start on his poorly inter-personal skills. If it wasn’t for Kuroo, and for Sakusa (the third roommate), he wouldn’t have any friends, not even the guys in the volleyball team. How does he expect to meet a random person like that?

“Bro, for real, I swear it on whatever you want, just come and see how it goes, if it’s a no-no I will send Sanada away and you can enjoy the party as much as you want” the name is familiar. Hajime remembers a pitcher with that name, but it could be a coincidence. 

“Whatever” he answers because he cannot really fight it anymore. He would just ignore the guy and maybe drink until he would forget his own name“but please, no more suggestion from Michimiya” it’s a harmless comment, but Kuroo understands and reassures him that Yui is not in charge of finding him dates. 

“Let’s go!” from his expression, Kuroo is very confident. He even helps Iwaizumi in finding something to put on. A couple of weeks before, while having a breakdown, Hajime threw out all of his clothes. Somehow Sugawara was very happy, especially since he was the one who brought him around to buy new ones. 

So, with a pair of jeans too tight to exist, and a blue sweater, Hajime is ready. Kuroo doesn’t change his usual total black outfit, and like that they go out. Sakusa is not with them, with his girlfriend being a resident assistant he prefers to spend Friday nights with her in the university dorms. The walk from their apartment to Bokuto’s is not really long. In the meantime, Kuroo just had to point out the _handsomeness_ of the guy they set him up with. 

“Why would you tell me that? You know I don’t like _pretty_ people” and that is true. If there is one thing that Hajime doesn’t find attractive at all it’s good looking people.

Being the third of four siblings is hard enough, but being the least attractive is very frustrating. However, this disadvantage really opened his eyes to the reality of the so-called ‘ _pretty boys_ ’ and ‘ _popular girls_ ’. Hayato and Haru are basically pricks. Not only dumb, because they only care about their looks, but they also treat everyone like shit just because they can. Even if Hana is slightly better, she is very much full of herself. She doesn’t insult people, but she uses her looks to get guys to buy her food and other things like that. Growing up like this, it’s not difficult to understand why pretty people bother him so much. They’re always hiding something, either a secret or a shitty personality, and it isn’t really Iwaizumi’s type. 

“You know that I think that this theory of yours is stupid” and that may be true, but Hajime doesn’t really care about Kuroo’s opinion on the matter.

“ _If_ , and I want to highlight _if_ , I really want to see someone, for sure it will not be some pretty boy for a one night stand” and as if Hajime is seeing directly through Kuroo’s plan, his friend starts rumbling on the importance of life, and all that YOLO shit. He’s ready to reply that it’s not his fault if he’s unable to act like any other college student, but they arrive in front of Bokuto’s building, hearing music from outside.

“I hope no one will call the police” and with that, they get inside. The apartment is relatively too small for the number of people that are in, and that’s annoying. Bokuto opens the door and gives both of them _manly_ hugs, as he likes to call them. He attends Chuo, Waseda worst rival in the tournament, but he has known Kuroo his entire life and he’s fun to hang out with. The two universities are both in the metropolitan area of the city, so it’s not unusual that the student’s buildings are in the same neighborhood. 

Not even a minute inside his house, Bokuto starts telling Iwaizumi all about his day, and whatever the guy had on his mind. Hajime would have more likely spend his time with him, but Kuroo takes his left arm and leads him in the living room. Sawamura Daichi and Sugawara Kuoshi are the first people he spots. They’re talking with one of their former high school teammates Asahi Azumane, and as soon as they see him Koushi smirks in his direction because of course he would.

“Oh well, is that Hajime out on a Friday night?” he says, and Iwaizumi eyes just roll naturally at that. Sawamura is amused too, but he just fist-bumps him and tells him he’s glad to see him out. Then he moves next to Kuroo, slightly patting his back and kissing his ear. It’s so domestic Iwaizumi almost laughs at them for the unexpected sweetness.

“The power of love brought him out of the apartment” Kuroo declares hugging his boyfriend. Bokuto chuckles uncomfortably touching his forehead, but Sugawara’s laughter is so loud that a bunch of people just stare at them weirdly. He tries to leave after that, but someone grabs his left arm.

“Hajime-kun is pretty tonight, is he going to steal someone’s heart?” every time Atsumu Miya speaks, Iwaizumi wants to break his jaw. His persona is very chaotic, and he’s always the one who gets into trouble first. He’s an incredibly skilled setter, and he’s glad to be able to play with him. However, it’s really unfortunate that his personality completely sucks and that Iwaizumi would rather spend time with his twin, Osamu. Not that the other Miya is more approachable, but Osamu is quieter, and he doesn’t randomly bother people just because. Somehow, they remind him of his own twin brothers. Just another thing to add to his argument of why pretty boys _suck_.

“I mean, you put on your abs sweater for a reason, right?” Iwaizumi doesn’t even realize what it means until he sees Kuroo grinning. He may be slightly mad at that. Though, Atsumu’s comment is so similar to what his ex used to say that Hajime wants to change. The sweater is literally burning his skin, and while his friends chat about how good he looks Iwaizumi just wants to tear it apart. Sawamura must have noticed the shift in his face because he slaps Atsumu’s forehead and shuts him. His focus easily shifts when messy orange hair forces their attention to the group. Hinata Shouyou is a first-year at Waseda, and he’s already friends with all Tokyo. He is the shortest middle blocker he has ever seen his entire life, and whenever he spikes he literally flies. 

“IWAIZUMI-SAN!!!!!!!!!!!” he screams from the other side of the room, and with that, he leaves that bunch of idiots to catch up with one of his favorite underclassmen. They bonded over shoujo mangas and romantic tropes one afternoon at the beginning of the semester. Since then, Hinata has been one of the most supportive people in his dream of becoming a writer of romantic dramas. Not that the others are not supportive, but they would easily tease him about how such a grumpy man would write sap stuff.

“Iwaizumi-san I’m so happy to see you, this party is nice but now is much better-” and with that, the young man rumbles something about the next practice match, some sort of manga he started last week, and Kageyama, altogether without breathing. Hajime smiles fondly to him while trying to catch up with all the information that he’s being provided.

It’s kind of weird. He thought about this a lot, but Hinata would make such a brilliant protagonist. Hajime can see in him all the traits that the young, cheerful, and hardworking protagonist trying to prove their value in the big city. The fact that he’s also pining over a mysterious, brooding and super genius setter from Chuo it’s just extra content. _The good one_. Indeed, Kageyama Tobio seems to come straight out a romantic novel, which is totally unfair, _to be honest_ , but Iwaizumi doesn’t mind it. His mind plays in his head scenarios of every time Hinata updates him about their _non-existent_ love story. It’s a bit creepy, but as long as it’s in his head is fine.

“So, how is Kageyama? Is he not coming?” Hajime knows he should not ask, more because the week after they’re going to have an important practice match with a university from the Kansai region (he’s not good with names at all), and Hinata tends to be overdramatic when something is about Kageyama.

“That jerk,” he starts, and Iwaizumi’s eyes brighten up on Hinata’s flushing cheeks “he texted me saying he was tired, can you believe it Iwaizumi-san? We hardly see each other during the week and then he ditches me…” but his only source of joy is broken again by fucking Kuroo Tetsurou and Sawamura. He excuses them by saying that Hajime has more important things to do. Obviously, Atsumu is next to them, four beer cups at hand, and a devilish grin.

“Or person you mean” and with that last smirk, Iwaizumi takes his beer and kicks Atsumu in the back, leaving him again. Too much Miya for one night.

Even though the house is not that big, it takes almost ten minutes for Iwaizumi, Kuroo, and Sawamura to look for the infamous date. He really doesn’t want to meet anyone, so his glance moves again to Hinata. Man, he really wanted to know about Kageyama. Atsumu promptly stepped into the conversation with the younger student, and then _it_ happened. 

It was going to go unnoticed, but Hajime catches that image just in time, and it takes him a few seconds to register. Hinata says something and then Atsumu smiles. Not a fake one, not a mocking one, not a grin or smirk. Atsumu _smiles_ full teeth and Hajime’s eyes cannot believe it. The little shit has never smiled like that in two years, and if 10 years of drama have taught him something, it’s that a smile like that doesn’t appear just because. 

Hajime’s fingers are burning, he wishes he had his computer because he prefers to type there. He can feel his brain fuming, and he’s really forcing himself to maintain his normal expression. But it happens again. Not only he smiles, but Atsumu scuffles Hinata’s hair and _that’s it_. The first original idea he has in _months_. Like an epiphany. He can’t just let it slide.

“Oh, here he is” but Iwaizumi’s not paying much attention anymore. He grabs his phone and quickly opens the notes. His eyes are fixed on the scene between the two underclassmen, and the more they interact the more his fingers type faster. Words come one after another, and Iwaizumi hasn’t felt that excited in a while. He observes the two and he feels alive, right in his element. 

Kuroo’s speaking, but not to him. It gives Hajime at least a few more minutes to type. Iwaizumi’s not very into complicated stuff. He likes the easy formula in romance. During high school, one of his teachers told the class that it was not about being absolutely original, but in the way you tell the story. That really stuck with him to that day. Atsumu Miya is just dumbly in love, he’s not the first and not the last. But that smile feels good to watch, and it deserves to be remembered.

“Iwaizumi-san, it’s nice to finally meet you” suddenly someone calls for his name, and he comes back into reality. It isn’t the first time he spaces out, but when he feels immersed in his writing he couldn’t care less.

He raises his eyes to meet the ones of Sanada Shunpei. So he really is the pitcher from the baseball team, and he’s totally good-looking. Truth to be told, he said to himself that it would be easy for him to dodge this bullet, but being actually in the situation is a different thing. “Hello Sanada-san” he says politely to him, almost smiling. However, the lean figure next to Sanada makes his smile to falter and completely change his expression.

Oikawa Tooru is the most handsome guy of their age. It’s not him, but sports’ magazines and the various advertisements’ he took part prove that. _Oikawa Tooru’s beauty is even beyond_ is his most famous slogan, from a shampoo campaign. The spot has aired in the middle of Shibuya for three weeks, and Iwaizumi skipped it on YouTube too many times. The genius setter plays for Chuo with Kageyama and Bokuto, and he has a long rivalry with Ushijima since high school. He really hates that guy. But Iwaizumi’s not _this_ petty so “Hello Oikawa-san” he still says, tightening his teeth and trying to not sound rude. They played against each other a bunch of times, mostly during university, because Iwaizumi’s high school in Hokkaido never made it to nationals. 

“Iwaizumi-san” he bows politely, which makes Hajime cringe even more. He doesn’t know how all of his friends are tight with the guy, but Oikawa Tooru doesn’t send him good vibes. He has one of the fakest and most obnoxious personalities ever. Even worse than Atsumu. And the way in which he’s with Ushijima makes Iwaizumi’s blood boils. He’s childish and arrogant. Kuroo hangs out a lot with him, and every time he tried to make them interact, Iwaizumi had always excuses. At one point he stopped trying, and that was for the best. 

“I see that you have already been booked” Hajime tries really hard not to punch him at that. He tightens his hands to his phone and ignores the comment. Probably Oikawa notices it because his body tenses all of a sudden. They never really had a conversation. The first time they met, Oikawa was making out with Semi Eita in Bokuto’s room. Hajime remembers looking for the bathroom to open the door and finding them grossly exchanging saliva on the desk. He remembers Oikawa smirking to him and asking if he wanted to join, and since then their interactions have been kept at a minimum.

“It’s what I’ve been trying to tell you all night” in remarks, Sanda Shunpei is not very different from Oikawa. Being a baseball fan himself, Iwaizumi knows that the pitcher has not a good reputation. They have already met once, Iwaizumi and Sanada. The year before Sawamura was telling him that his cousin was in the baseball team, and so they went to one of the games and after-game dinner. The game was good, the dinner not so much. The pitcher was, in fact, surrounded by girls for the entire time. Sawamura’s cousin tried to explain some stupid excuse, but Hajime knew better.

“You can keep going if you want, it’s no big deal,” Hajime says trying to sound unbothered. He feels Kuroo’s elbow right on his side. It hurts. He doesn’t even want this date, Oikawa Tooru could have it. Why are they even wasting time? The two pretty boys probably deserve each other anyway.

“C’mon Hajime, Shunpei asked specifically about you” Kuroo winks. Iwaizumi raises his eyebrows confused.

“Specifically about me?”

Being Sawamura very awkward in this kind of situation, he just laughs. Iwaizumi tries sending him signals. He really wants to be saved, but Sawamura is oblivious and naïve, and he doesn’t get it. On the other hand, Oikawa just stares. He stares at him intensely. Hajime could feel his glances piercing his head, and it’s not nice.

“Yeah, Kuroo showed me a picture of your biceps and that was love at first sight” and for _god’s sake_ , he needs to throw up. Sawamura tries very hard to contain his laughter once again, and Hajime really appreciates that. He is the best of them all.

“Dude, what the fuck? I told you not to say that!” says Kuroo bitterly, and at that point, even Oikawa Tooru laughs, loudly and with wide eyes. Hajime seriously wants to punch him.

“And I think that is my cue” Hajime hisses with a straight face.

“Sanada-san, Oikawa-san” Iwaizumi bows to them goodbye, and after giving the middle finger to Kuroo he decides that it’s time to get drunk and find a way to punish him.

---

A week after Bokuto’s party Kuroo is still sorry about the whole Sanada fiasco. Not that Hajime complains about it. In fact, his roommate would make him coffee every morning and wash his dishes after dinner. He likes it very much. What he doesn’t like are the lame excuses that followed every single thing. So, at one point Hajime had to tell him to stop and that he was forgiven.

It’s one of those days without practice, Sakusa is at his girlfriend’s house and Kuroo spends his day with Sawamura. Five months before he would have spent the day with his girlfriend too, but that’s a distant memory now. He has no intention of staying in his room getting mold, so he goes out. With his computer and all of his notebooks with various notes and sketches, Iwaizumi ends up going to the café next to his building. He likes to write there. Tendou Satori, Ushijima’s boyfriend, works part-time as a barista, and his coffee is one of the best he had so far since he moved to Tokyo.

“Hajime-chan” he smiles waving to him. He doesn’t really like the nickname, but when he tried to say something Ushijima pushed that he would never win the war, so it stuck. Contrary to any popular beliefs, Iwaizumi loves hanging out with Ushijima and Tendou. May sound weird, but, after Kuroo, Ushijima is the second person he bonded within the team. They balance each other, him and Tendou, and they are fun to be around. They have been together since high school. The tall red-head would easily complete the ace sentences, and Ushijima would just tell him when he was being too much. They work well together, and that’s nice.

“Are you here to finish your fanfiction?” the barista teases, but Iwaizumi rolls his eyes with a small smile. He didn’t like the teasing at first, but at one point he had to stop caring. It’s their way of showing affection after all. Suga would always ask for an autograph once the novel’s done _(“You do know I don’t write novels, right?” “It’s the same”_ ). Kuroo and Sakusa just don’t believe him because with that face he could never write that stuff. So they think he’s trolling them. Bokuto is the weirdest, because he wants a character named by him. And of course, Tendou is all about yaoi fanfiction. He even asked for a Sanji x Zoro once, Iwaizumi really thought about writing that.

“I’m trying, I actually think I found some inspiration lately” and that’s true. He grabs his black coffee from Tendou’s hand and seats in his usual table on the side letting his fingers to work.

Since Bokuto’s party, Hajime has the weirdest idea of putting all of his previous work together. The worst thing is that his inspiration is Atsumu, but no one will ever know. He doesn’t even think about anything, that words come out, and he doesn’t even change the real names of the people he’s imagining. He would do it later. This opportunity is gold, and he’s sure he’ll go crazy if he doesn’t write it. 

Sawako Chiha ruined his life. May sound dramatic, especially for Iwaizumi Hajime because he loves drama only on tv. But she really did. Michimiya Yui introduced them at the beginning of their first year by mistake. He was hanging out with Kuroo and Sawamura at one of the events the university organized for freshmen, and they were trying to hook her up with Sakusa, the other roommate.

Sawako had fluffy, brunette, short hair, and she introduced herself as the one who can fly because the kanji of her first name means “a thousand wings”. She was slightly taller than him, and she was going to be the captain of the female volleyball team very soon. She was beautiful in every possible way, too perfect to be even real, and Iwaizumi just fell for it.

They teased each other throughout their first semester with texts, snap chats and Instagram stories, and then during the spring, they started dating. She had a bubbly personality and a strong sense of competition. Everyone out there was her rival, Iwaizumi included. He found out when that semester they shared a class together and she wouldn’t talk to him when his grades were better than hers. She wasn’t his first kiss or the first person he had sex with, but everything with her was like living it for the first time. She felt so perfect, that maybe that moments with her were Iwaizumi’s first times and he just didn’t know better.

They were so different yet he fitted so good in her life that it was easy for Hajime to just stuck with her. Their conversations were always exciting, they talked from philosophy to weird advertisements on tv to that one song from One Direction before Zayn left the band. Falling for her was easy, his friends were happy for him and he was too. He felt full and satisfied. _She was the one_. She was the one all the dramas he’d watched were talking about.

His writing peaked at its best. All the pages he wrote were about her. About her fluffy hair, her grinning smile, and her sarcastic personality that made him listen to her for hours. She was funny and mean at the same time, and he loved how people wouldn’t understand her insults or arrogant comments. She was energetic and passionate, and she really liked having sex in the guys’ bathroom of the main campus’s second floor. He had never seen her crying, and she liked to tease him for having a sentimental side. She was the star of her own life, and Hajime loved that about her.

He obsessed over Chiha rapidly, and the worst part was that she was encouraging him. Being both in the volleyball teams they would practice together a lot. They would study together every day, and they would sleep together either at his or her house, she would make sure that Hajime’s life was solely devoted to her. She especially loved Hajime’s body, and every excuse was good for her to strip his t-shirts and just explore his abs. Which made of course their sex life very interesting sometimes. She really enjoyed buying him clothes and dressing him up to show him off to all of her friends. Sawako used to get mad when he wasn’t wearing something she picked up first.

When people noticed that something was wrong, it was very unexpected that the firsts were Michimiya and Sawamura. Even though they loved Sawako, they also thought that Iwaizumi needed his space. Not that he was thinking clearly at the time, but he would say that it was their honeymoon phase. They weren’t really sure about that, especially Sawamura. He didn’t like that behavior, pointing it out many times. But Hajime was always denying it. He got to a point in which he had to tell them that he didn’t need any love advice, and they never spoke of it again. Later on, he realized it wasn’t a honeymoon phase, and that Sawamura was right.

At one point, after one year together, Sawako started to lose her interest. “I am the captain now, I need to focus” she would say. And that was okay. They didn’t see each other as much, but she asked for notes and help with homework and that was okay. It was an unconscious shift because at one point he was writing two essays instead of one. His schedule became tight, and he gradually had to change things in his life. 

First, it was his dramas. Friday night was now Friday with Chiha’s friend, and he didn’t have enough time to catch up anymore. Also, “It’s just weird that my boyfriend watches the same stuff as my little sister”, so that was it. Then, it was time with his friends. He realized he hadn’t seen Bokuto in a month when he accidentally saw him in his house. The wing spiker from Chuo said he really missed him. Iwaizumi missed him too. 

His writing was right after. The excitement of the beginning was put aside from the hundreds of things that he ended up doing. He didn’t think that much, he had to buy a hard disk for all of the pages spent describing Chiha, so for the moment was enough. The real wake-up call was with volleyball. Iwaizumi loved volleyball, not as much as his drama, but he was really good at it. His level was that good that he's staying in university was connected to the full scholarship he had thanks to volleyball. He started to ditch morning practices to study more. The coach called him aside to talk a Wednesday afternoon, if he was going to miss again they would give his scholarship to someone else. 

It was like waking up by being thrown iced water. All of his worst fears hit him. Disappointing the coach, his team, _his mother_. He couldn’t do that. Waseda is a good school, one of the best, he just couldn’t. Sawako and him never really argued about anything, and he was really afraid that they would fight really harshly. However, it didn’t go as he thought it was going to be. She was a second-year first string prodigy and the captain of her team, and he was not. She really couldn’t mess it up, she had to put volleyball first. _So did he_ , but he didn’t say. 

“I love you, if you love me you would help me” it was the first time someone said they loved him. His heart exploded. _He couldn’t lose her_ _now_. It wasn’t his smartest choice, but he remembered why he loved dramas and romantic comedy so much: the happy ending.

Hajime lost his father when he was two years old. He didn’t suffer any issues about it, he didn’t know the guy that much like his older brothers. His mother provided everything his siblings and him needed just fine, so his childhood had been happy and uneventful. But when he was thirteen, he was half asleep in his mother’s lap during a hot summer night. She was caressing his head, and as a guest, they had one of her mother’s childhood friends for dinner. He had never heard his mother talking about his father ever before that, so when the conversation started he forced himself to stay awake.

“We were together for 6 years, but he never told me he loved me. I didn’t have my happy ending” his mother said. But Sawako did to him. _She loved him_ , they were going to have their happy ending, and he couldn’t lose her.

He couldn’t skip practice anymore too though. Volleyball was too important in his life. But Iwaizumi didn’t discourage himself. He was going to help her, no doubt. Losing sleep was easy, summer was almost there so he could manage. Lunchtime and dinner time were perfect to review because the library was always empty at that time. He could push it if he wanted too, and he wanted too much.

Sawako was always around, showing off her boyfriend and everything was fine. She would tell him she loved him every morning, and he felt he was in heaven. But when the tournament started that was their only interactions. She couldn’t lose her focus, and he was full of stuff to do. He would go to her matches and cheer her up, and sometimes, even if he wasn’t playing, Iwaizumi would see her seated with Michimiya, paying attention to her phone. Still, she was there, and she loved him and that was enough.

He didn’t really remember clearly how it happened but the coach made him play during the semifinals of their tournament. Hajime was rather excited because he was playing against Bokuto, Sugawara and the infamous Oikawa Tooru in an official match. But the best part was that Sawako was there. She was seated with Michimiya very close to the court, phone in her hands texting someone. He needed to grab her attention.

Once in court, he briefly exchanged some words with Atsumu, and the game was on. The adrenaline was pumping on his muscles harder than usual. He felt every fiber of his body crystal clear, and after a very rough attack from Bokuto, Hajime saw it. Atsumu was tossing to him and that was the moment he was waiting for since forever in that team. The ball fell at the exact moment he was spiking, and the loud noise it made, once it was on the ground, was majestic. He saw it in slow motion from up there, for a brief moment he glanced towards Sawako, but she was texting again. His teammates were cheering him, but once his feet touched the ground it was black.

He fainted in the middle of the game right after he scored.

Iwaizumi woke up in a hospital bed the day after. _Exhaustion_ , the doctor said when he was awake. His mother and Hana were crying on his left side and Kuroo, Sawamura and Haru were on his right.

“Where is Chiha?” he asked as soon as he had the strength to speak.

“It’s her final match today” Kuroo answered dryly. He wanted to say something else, he could see it in his eyes, but Sawamura stopped him. His mother cried a bit more. He didn’t know why, but Hana and Haru started yelling about something he didn’t understand.

At that point, it was Sawamura who made them all calm down. Hayato came later that day, he was happy to see him awake and when Hana, Haru, and his mother left the room to grab some dinner he seated really close to him and took his hands. He was born 15 minutes before Haru, and he liked to think he was the eldest of them all.

“She never visited you” he only said. But it didn’t matter, it was her final match and Chiha loved him. It was fine. Iwaizumi saw on Instagram that she won. He was proud. She won, he loved her, everything was fine.

He stayed in the hospital for three more days, and Chiha never went. Summer was finally coming along and his team actually won the tournament. He was happy he didn’t mess up the game. One day his coach visited him at the hospital, he was very disappointed by the fact he was not taking care of himself, and that had to change. He also added that in the fall he would start in the first string, so he needed to stay healthy. That night Hajime cried. He didn’t know if it was for Sawako or for his coach.

They met each other again one week after he was released. Hayato, Haru, Hana, and his mother had left to go back to Urakawa the day before, and he was going to have dinner with Kuroo at that place near their house where they made a super good agedashi tofu. Sawako never tried to contact him, and he left her space.

Though suddenly she was there. Her hair was a bit longer, but her smile was still like a grin, she had makeup on and she was crossing her legs in her weird way because she didn’t like to touch the ground with her feet. She was there, and she was smiling at this other dude. A big American-looking guy with blonde hair and blue eyes, the exact opposite of him. He didn’t realize he was laughing until she moved her eyes to him. Nothing. They stared at each other for what seemed an eternity, but she said nothing.

Then Kuroo approached her, he asked a few questions but Iwaizumi didn’t move or hear anything. He saw them talking, and he heard Kuroo raising his voice. “ _He loves you!_ ” he said almost yelling, but Chiha seemed unbothered. “I’m moving to Brazil in the fall, they have better teams,” she said to Kuroo. “I’m a top player, I need to focus on volleyball” she said. “I only love volleyball” she said looking at him. “I’m sorry” she finished.

She was beautiful even like that, and maybe that was the first time in a while that she really showed herself to him. He didn’t know where he found that strength, maybe self-preservation, but Iwaizumi grabbed a furious Kuroo, “Good luck” he said to her and he bowed goodbye, and that was it. Nothing was the same after that.

Summer was awful. Hajime didn’t leave his mother’s house, he deleted his social media accounts and spent two weeks crying by himself. The whole time was like a blurry dream. He was ignoring phone calls from his friends, but his family was there. It was weird for a while, because Hayato and Haru were actually nice to him, bringing him to parties and stuff, and Hana was in his room always re-watching _What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim?_. His mother was cooking almost every night agedashi tofu and katsudon, and the fridge was full of that strawberry milk he loves. 

One night, it was him, Hana and their mother on the couch. Like old times. NHK was airingthe second season of _Good Morning Call_ , and the second lead said: “ _Rather than being with someone you love, it’s much easier to be with someone who will love you,_ _you have to make_ _sure of that, Nao-chan_.” Hajime felt the need to rip off his heart from his body.

“I agree” his mother simply said. She moved her hand taking his, squeezing it a little bit. That night was the last time he cried.

Iwaizumi woke up the morning after and cooked breakfast for his family. They all saw him moving in the kitchen, nobody spoke at the moment, but they thanked him afterword. He went out for two hours run and then he cleaned his room. He asked Hana if they could watch together a run over of _Goblin_ that was on TV, and that night he skyped with Kuroo, Bokuto, and Ushijima for five hours. None of them mentioned Sawako, and they never would after that. He started doing things systematically, and so once in school, everything was like Chiha never existed. She was also in Brazil, so no big deal. His heart was broken, but little by little his routine started again.

Friday was again drama night. He hang out with Bokuto at least three times a week to catch up and made new friends with the freshmen. He never skipped a meal, and he forced himself to sleep eight hours per day. The hardest thing was writing. Every time he had to write something that was not for an assignment, he would just panic. Once, he forced himself into writing even a stupid characterization, but he ended up with a gigantic panic attack and sleeping in the same bed with Kuroo and Sawamura.

Then he met Hinata, and the bubbly freshmen would just never stop talking about shoujo manga. When he discovered Iwaizumi used to write romantic comedies, he demanded to read them, and his feedbacks gave him more confidence. He would open words and type something, and for the moment it was enough.

So, here he is, five months after everything in his life collapsed, with a new plot and a mug full of americano. Not that he’s feeling completely healed, but it’s definitely better than expected. Whenever someone is talking about Sawako, Iwaizumi doesn’t flinch anymore. He had the strength to activate his social media again and unfollow her easily. Three hours into the coffee shop and Hajime has written almost eleven pages. The last time it happened was over a year ago, and he feels incredibly happy.

His fingers are typing quick and loud. If he weren’t an athlete he would try to start smoking, only because all the writers he knows were smokers. Once he notices his coffee’s done, he stops his writing, willing to have another one. However, a lean and gracious figure is seated in front of him with a grin.

“Are you always this intense?” Oikawa Tooru asks, but the real question is, how long has he been there?

“What?”

“I mean, you were really focused, that was a nice view” Oikawa’s fingers are holding tight a takeaway coffee cup. His eyes are staring playfully at Hajime, and his mouth is showing just a bit of teeth. He looks straight out of a magazine, very fake.

“Do you usually creep out people like that?” he asks instead. That is their very first face-to-face conversation in three years.

“People would pay to be in your spot, Iwaizumi-san” he says slowly adjusting his hair. True. Many people would have literally fought to be in front of that model-wanna-be, but he really doesn’t. 

“I’m waiting for Wakatoshi, would you like to wait for him with me?” at Ushijima’s name Oikawa’s eyes flinch a bit. Hajime is also lying because when they don’t have practice and Tendou is working, Ushijima spends his day at home catching up with his readings and doing skype calls with his father.

“Uuh, your nose just got longer, Iwaizumi-san. It’s not nice to lie” Oikawa is dressed casually, with a grey sweatshirt and a blue scarf. He’s wearing glasses, and he’s moving his body like if someone’s filming him.

“What were you writing about?” asks right after. But Hajime doesn’t really want to give him any attention, so he gets up to order another coffee. The last thing he wants is for Oikawa Tooru to disturb him when he finally found a little bit of faith in himself. Especially since he has to start all over again from scratch.

Tendou has already prepared another mug for him as he is approaching the counter. These are the little things that usually make up for all the time he is a pain in the ass without Ushijima around. “Are you being charmed by Tooru-ru?” he questions smirking.

“I wish I wasn’t” he answers honestly “did you see him sitting in front of me?”

“Oh yeah, he was there for at least twenty minutes” the read-head says “he loves challenges, always been like this since high-school” even if Oikawa is always a dick around Wakatoshi, both he and Tendou are never really touched by the setter’s actions. He tried to ask him once why would they interacted with him in the first place, and Tendou had always answered that he liked to make out in front of him to make him suffer because Ushijima was Oikawa’s crush in middle school. He’s glad he is a friend with Tendou. He thanks for the coffee and sighs.

Once he is back in his seat, Oikawa Tooru has moved his computer and he’s reading what’s on it. His face instantly goes from normal to pale and then red in five seconds neat.

“Hey!” he yells. Trying not to spill his coffee on the computer, Hajime closes it. The noise must have been loud, because a girl jumps on her sit, and he could hear Tendou laughing from the counter.

“This is my stuff, you can’t do that” Iwaizumi is livid. How dare he looked at his things without permission? Who does he think he is? He has no rights.

“Sorry, I was jus-”

“You were nothing, what the fuck dude” he couldn’t believe it. For three years he really forced himself and talked his brain into not killing this pretentious asshole with his fists, but now he really doesn’t see any reason to stop.

“Because writing about Tobio-chan and Chibi-chan is okay?” Iwaizumi opens his mouth to answer something about privacy and that he wants him far away from there, but Oikawa Tooru is smiling crossing his legs with an elbow on the table cupping his left cheek.

“What the h-?”

“Why don’t you at least change their names? I mean… I know my Tobio-chan so _well_ , I would have guessed it anyway” with a sigh and a lot of patience, Iwaizumi sits again.

“It’s none of your business” is his only answer. They’re not even friends, why bother it anyway?

“Being that I deal with Tobio-chan unrequited love daily, I think I have some rights on the matter” Iwaizumi doesn’t like Oikawa's know-it-all smile. He is used to people teasing him, and he is used to Hinata’s feedbacks, but he really doesn’t like the arrogance that the setter is giving to him.

“And I can give you insights if you want, I know all about their love story” Hajime laughs slightly “I am a great love advisor, you know” their love story? Oikawa Tooru is not the type who looks invested in love at all, especially if it’s related to others and not himself. He doesn’t know shit about love, it’s written all over his face. People like Oikawa Tooru are not the types to fall in love in the first place.

“Have you ever been in love?” the setter probably doesn’t expect that question from Iwaizumi, because he stares with wide eyes “I mean, you probably were in love with Sanada-san on Friday night, right? Hope you two had a great time, by the way,” the last comment is probably unnecessary mean, he has to admit to himself. But people like the guy in front of him tends to bring out the worst in Iwaizumi.

“Yeah, what a night Friday, I heard you left rather soon after our funny conversation” and that again, like in a movie, Oikawa sips slowly his coffee and smiles again. The whole situation is very annoying.

“So, no answer?” Hajime pushes.

“Do I need to? I thought that not answering questions was our thing by now” but another death stare by Iwaizumi makes him coughing slightly and stretching his legs “Of course I’ve been in love, actually I’m currently in love” that is… unexpected. Hajime stares at Oikawa’s face thoughtful, trying to guess who could have stolen the setter’s heart. Oikawa must have caught the implied question because his smile grows a bit wider and he pops his tongue mockingly.

“My only love is volleyball” the feeling of déjà vu hits Hajime right in his face unexpectedly. He probably stares more than necessary, because Oikawa arches his eyebrows in surprise. Iwaizumi couldn’t feel his fingers anymore, he’s being overwhelmed by tons of different emotions that he has locked down somewhere in his brain not too long ago.

“Iwaizumi-san…?” it’s quick, because Oikawa moves his hand closer to Hajime’s face, and in trying to move it he ends up pulling his full coffee cup onto his lap.

“Fuck!” he mutters, the coffee is still hot and it burns the shit out of him.

“Are you o-”

“Can you please fuck off?!” he yells again. It isn't right, because at the end of the day Oikawa is probably joking, and his reaction is way overdramatic. But that grin. The way in which he’s so full of himself while saying it. It’s so similar to Chiha’s expression that it’s too much to handle.

Tendou arrives right after, with tons of paper towels and an “Hajime-chan are you okay?!” Oikawa stares, while the read-head tries to dry Iwaizumi’s pants and says some weird inappropriate joke about how it looks like he is giving him head. The setter leaves right after. Iwaizumi sighs annoyed, his fingers are still trembling, but he manages to apologize to Tendou and to pack up his stuff for the day.

_Fuck Chiha. Fuck volleyball. Fuck Oikawa Tooru._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i was watching be melodramatic and this happened


	2. II.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> iwaizumi is done

“Omi-kun, your last spike made my heart flutters” Atsumu’s words are weird, and definitely out of character. He doesn’t add any insult, so Iwaizumi asks Kuroo if something is wrong, but the black-haired middle blocker doesn’t know.

Like any other Monday, after practice, Kuroo likes to have people over, and by people, he means only Atsumu and Ushijima. Iwaizumi tried many times to dissuade him, so did Sakusa, but the black-haired weirdo doesn’t listen to them in general. He started it when last year he fell for Sawamura Daichi’s thighs, and he said that he needed an intervention. At the time, Sakusa pointed out that, it's usually them who are supposed to organize the intervention for him, not the other way around. But that are details, and a great tradition started.

So, Kuroo, Sakusa, Atsumu, Ushijima, and Iwaizumi first stop at the grocery store to buy food and then leave for having dinner together at home. Sakusa prefers to eat meals prepared by himself because he is afraid that one of these days he would die of food poisoning. After the food, the others would wash the dishes and clean the kitchen. The after dinner is always dictated by Kuroo and Atsumu’s mood. Sometimes they would watch a movie or play monopoly (especially when later Sawamura joined them some days), other times they would study together or talk in general about anything.

That Monday Atsumu is particularly down. He only teased Sakusa once, without really meaning it, and he didn’t push for having breakfast for dinner like any other week. Kuroo teases him saying that maybe they should have called Osamu, and he answers that maybe they should have. It’s bad. When even Ushijima tried to make conversation during dinner, Atsumu didn’t even answer him.

“Okay” the last dish is clean, and the boys are spread all over the living room “Atsumu-san, did someone die?” Wakatoshi’s tone is like the usual monotone. Kuroo almost chokes trying to contain his laughter, while Sakusa is rolling his eyes asking himself how it’s possible to be this blunt. Iwaizumi hits Ushijima’s shoulder muttering something like things like this can’t be asked like that, but still, the former ace from Shiratorizawa doesn’t see the problem.

“Atsumu-san is visibly down, I don’t see any other reason why” he starts saying. And when Ushijima notices, it must really be something wrong. Even though the way in which he expresses it seems like mockery, his teammates see the earnest concern that Ushijima is having for Atsumu.

“Ushiwaka is right, what up man?” Kuroo moves himself to seat closer to the setter.

“No one is dead” he answers “it’s fine, tomorrow I’ll be the Atsumu you all love and envy, don’t worry about it” the grin the younger is showing doesn’t convince Iwaizumi in the slightest. Hajime likes to observe his teammates, not only because he wants to be better in expressing human emotions in his writing, but _somehow_ he cares about them. He cares about that little shit, and he wants to hear him out. At that moment, the voice of his mother in his head telling him that he should stop caring so much about others, and caring more about himself is loud and clear.

“Is it about Hinata?” Atsumu’s face goes pale quickly. Hajime’s question is put outright, without any judgment, but just concern.

“Should we call him to help figure out the problem? I think he mentioned to me he has a test tomorrow, I don’t think he would come” but, as expected, Ushijima is the only one who completely misunderstands Iwaizumi’s question. Sakusa raises an eyebrow like he knows something; Kuroo puts on his devilish smile and pops his tongue in a way that makes Hajime regret even speaking.

“What about Hinata, Hajime?” he asks, in fact, completely ignoring a very confused Ushijima.

“ _This_ has nothing to do with Shouyou-kun!” Atsumu answers nervously. Another sign that means that Hajime must have guessed what’s wrong, because Atsumu is rarely nervous, and he would have made some sharp comments to change the subject.

“Guys, for real, nothing is going on” but again, Kuroo doesn’t really believe the setter, staring at him with plotting eyes. Iwaizumi really hates Kuroo in moments like these, because everything could happen when he has that kind of eyes. One day, for example, Bokuto, Kuroo and he ended up an entire weekend in jail just because Kuroo decided that it would have been really fun to steal a monkey from the zoo. Still to that day, Hajime doesn’t know why he really went with them in the first place.

Sakusa must have felt something from Kuroo’s stares because he’s looking at Atsumu with knowing eyes. Hajime knows that the two have always been invited together at the training camps that the national team hosted every year for people under sixteen, so he has really been used to Atsumu’s drama for a very long time now.

“Okay Tsumu, don’t worry about it” but both Hajime and Sakusa know that this isn’t the case. Kuroo glares at the young wing spiker, and Hajime raises an eyebrow, are they telepathic now? “But talking about Chibi…” and then Iwaizumi connects the dots “when do you think Kageyama and him will have sex? It’s actually a pain listening to him now”.

“True, the midget won’t shut up about that setter, how long have they known each other anyway?” Hajime knows that Sakusa is only fueling Kuroo in order to get answers. As expected, Atsumu falls silent once again, clenching his teeth and staring at his soda on the table in the middle of the room.

“It’s actually a very interesting story. They met for the first time during their last year of middle school, faced each other during the tournament, Hinata-san told me all about their rivalry” the best thing is that Ushijima probably doesn’t even try to read between the lines, but Kuroo is forever grateful for that and for being his friend. It’s a brief moment though because Atsumu snaps.

“Who cares about Tobio-kun? He is the enemy, we should think of ways to crush him” Kuroo’s lips are tight in a satisfying smile. Sakusa rolls his eyes _again_ , and Ushijima stares. Iwaizumi doesn’t mind that side of Atsumu. He is flustered, and his face is red. His words are meaner with intentions, and it’s the most real he sees Atsumu be in quite some time.

“Bokuto is also the enemy, but I don’t see any weird scheme to crush him, or hating him or…”

“Kuroo-san, just ask” and because it’s Ushijima, even Atsumu stares “I don’t like it when he wants to ask things, but he never gets there” explains to his friends’ stunned face.

“ _Et tu_ , Ushiwaka?” but no one cares about Kuroo’s being a drama queen. Sakusa just puts on his mask because he is afraid that the germs of _dumbassness_ are around. Ushijima tries to move away from a very annoying Kuroo, and Atsumu ignores everything around him still to pay attention to his soda.

“Atsumu, do you have feelings for Hinata?” Hajime knows that he’s the one who should ask. He asked in the first place, and the others are only annoying Atsumu too much to try to talk to him nicely.

At their friend’s question, the other three go silent. Sakusa’s expression even shifts from an annoyed scowl to a curious one. Iwaizumi remembers what he saw during Bokuto’s party. He saw Atsumu’s bright smile and the way his eyes were following the short guy with fondness and affection. He saw all of it and he wants some confirmation. It’s not even related to his fucking drama anymore. Iwaizumi sees daily how much Atsumu is hiding behind all of his fake smiles and forced politeness regarding the matter of Kageyama in front of Hinata, and it’s sickening to least.

“I…” it’s one of the few times that Atsumu has really no words, gaping air and looking towards anyone to change the subject “I don’t know okay? What do you want me to say? He’s cute and fun to hang out with and.. NGH!” seeing him all bothered is very refreshing in Iwaizumi’s eyes. Not because he likes that, but he looks normal for once.

“It’s okay man, we all had an unrequited love here at least once” Kuroo says patting his back.

“Not really, I never liked someone before Satori, and he did all the job” Ushijima’s words are casual, they look at him for a second and then the room is filled with laughter quickly, changing the vibes.

“That’s because you are dense, your mind is full of volleyball, and only Tendou would put up with you” Sakusa is right, even in Hajime’s opinion the red-head is the only person capable to deal with the big guy.

“That’s harsh Omi-kun, everyone is surprised you are in a relationship too” and with that the night shifts to their usual bickering. Ushijima frowns and picks his phone to answer some texts, probably Tendou, and Kuroo’s up telling the story of how he and Sawamura got together, again. Like they weren’t _there_ when it happened. He would never say it out loud, but Hajime likes their Monday night routine.

“You know what we should do?”

“No” is Sakusa’s answer to Kuroo’s question.

“Nothing good comes from your ideas” Hajime promptly backs up.

“Guys, listen to me” Kuroo is deadly serious, his voice almost as serious as Ushijima’s “let’s call Bokuto and Oikawa and figure it out this story, and then we can call Futakuchi and you” he points at Atsumu with an intense glance “you are going to have the time of your life, deal?” of all Kuroo’s plans, this seems the most legitimate and less harmful ever. Even Iwaizumi has to admit it isn’t such a bad idea, except…

“No Oikawa Tooru in this house” he blurts out immediately. Everyone is lost.

“He is a very skilled player, I’d like him to come to ask for more practice matches, I think it’s a good idea” but as usual Ushijima is not helping. After their bad meeting at the coffee shop the previous week, even thinking about the sight of Oikawa Tooru is literally giving Hajime the chills.

“Oh, oh, what am I hearing?” Kuroo pops his tongue devilishly “Is that any reason why Tooru is not accepted in our humble home?”

“Yeah, Hajime-kun, are you hiding something?” and now even the usual annoying Atsumu is out for him. Iwaizumi doesn’t want to think about the rival setter. God, he doesn’t even want to mention his name.

“He’s not that bad, when he’s drunk and doesn’t talk about aliens or the horoscope he’s funny,” Sakusa adds scrolling his shoulders “sometimes”.

“I don’t like that guy, isn’t that enough?” but, of course, for Kuroo it’s not.

“It’s not even for you, just ignore him” he hisses, now almost annoyed, which is absolute bullshit. Iwaizumi lives in the apartment as much as Kuroo and Sakusa, and he doesn’t want Oikawa around, is that too hard to understand?

“Sometimes it’s like I don’t even live here” he hates Kuroo’s arrogance. He always takes all the decisions by himself. If something pleases Kuroo good, if others are not okay they could suck it.

“Man, that’s not fair, you don’t have to talk to the guy” continues without even thinking of Hajime’s point of view.

“That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t talk to _me_ ” his hands are shaking, the memories of how much he sounded like Chiha still fresh in his brain. Annoyed by Kuroo’s scowl, and tired of Atsumu’s pout he goes “Bokuto? Perfect. Oikawa Tooru? Not in my presence”.

“Is it because of Friday?” Ushijima isn’t looking at any of them, but his fingers are typing quickly to his phone. _Fucking Tendou_. “I was asking Satori because you look really in distress and he told me you and Oikawa had an argument at the café.”

Kuroo takes his time at that. Hajime can see in his eyes that he wants to say something about it, but he’s thinking of how to approach it. Sakusa has given up a while before, saying that he really doesn’t give a shit as long as everybody is out before 1 am. It’s still a school day.

“Maybe someone has a crush on Tooru-kun” and of course is Atsumu the dick between them. He almost wants to say something about Hinata just to shut him up. But Hajime is not petty nor mean, no. Unlike Kuroo or Atsumu (and sometimes even Sakusa), he is not a piece of shit. And they are still his friends. Even if he wants to punch them until they pass out, they are still the ones who helped during a very dark time in his life.

“I was writing and he was bothering me” Iwaizumi answers trying to maintain his calm. Still, Atsumu hums some kind of pop love song, just to mock him. Ushijima nods, even if they tease him, they know how much it means to Hajime to be able to write, so Wakatoshi encourages him to continue the story.

“Yeah, but not wanting to see him seems drastic” Kuroo pushes. Hajime sighs, sooner or later he has to talk to them about it. It’s not like he doesn’t want to talk to them about his problems, but everything regarding his ex feels so tight that he can’t breathe sometimes.

“He bothered me, and he… he told me _he only loves volleyball_ , apparently, and I freaked out” he says, and Kuroo gets it immediately. His eyes are now worried, and Hajime can see that he’s feeling guilty. Ushijima frowns, when he heard missing moments of Sawako’s story, he promised Hajime not to say anything like that ever. Atsumu feels guilty too, he moves slowly next to Iwaizumi to give him a hug, but Sakusa stops him because he knows that Hajime doesn’t need contact now.

“I really don’t want to see him anytime soon” he continues, and Kuroo nods. It’s not like Oikawa Tooru knew. Outside his selected group of friends from Uni, maybe only Bokuto knows. It’s something that his closest friends knew because they were there, but he didn’t put posters around.

“Can I say something?” among them, Ushijima always surprises Hajime. Without Tendou, everything that comes outside his mouth is just him trying to socialize. The red-head told him once that he always had difficulties in expressing himself, and that’s why Hajime really likes spending time with him and listening to him. He can see that Wakatoshi is really trying. Hajime nods, and the three idiots next to him fall silent once again.

“I do understand your struggle,” he starts, he doesn’t have his phone in hand anymore “but I do also think that you should not run from him” the advice is weird, the four boys are very confused at the giant in front of them.

“Not… _run_? Wakatoshi, I’m not running, I don’t want to see him. It’s different” but Ushijima doesn’t seem to accept the answer.

“Listen, as much as I have come to understand, Oikawa Tooru shares many personality traits with Sawako Chiha” and if he thinks about it some more that’s true. Not only in the way they act, but Oikawa and Chiha’s characters are very similar.

“So, if you look at it in a different angle, you see that you have a second chance facing the same problem that blocked you in the first place” probably is Kuroo the one who gasps at Ushijima’s words, and Atsumu is bent on his knees muttering something about how cool the Ace is in that moment.

“Not only going out of your comfort zone will give confidence, but it will also give you another shot in dealing with your past issues” the worst thing is that what Wakatoshi is saying is right.

“Ushijima has a point” Sakusa quickly gets up and takes all the cans of soda from the table “writing is your thing, and what happened with that girl made it worse, why don’t you just hang out with the guy to see if you can do it back”

“I can write even without Oik-”

“Iwaizumi, bro, stop” Kuroo is now in front of him. His hands are on Hajime’s shoulders, and he’s looking straight into his eyes “you wrote a lot last week” he says “and it was after Bokuto’s party after you met Oikawa” Hajime wants to say that he’s writing because of Atsumu’s failing love life, but when he tries to answer Kuroo stops him again.

“You wrote after you argued with him too, I saw your computer and… 50 pages? For real? You’re on the roll” that’s, again, true. He is not sure how can they think it’s related to Oikawa Tooru, but it’s true and he can’t deny it.

“Maybe he’s your muse” and coming from Atsumu, Iwaizumi chuckles a little bit. Wakatoshi stares at him, with his usual expression, but his eyes have a slightly different tone than the familiar one.

“Hajime,” he says “you are a very strong player, and if you would have focused only in volleyball like all of us, you would have been even stronger” they had that conversation once before, during their first year when Ushijima was still a mystery and everybody was scared of him “but you look alive when you write, and when you have passion you must do whatever it takes.”

The Ace is totally right, he can’t understand the connection between his writing and Oikawa Tooru like their friends, but he doesn’t like it when they worry about him. Sometimes he thinks he really doesn’t deserve them. After Sawako, they have been next to him without judging him too much, and if hanging out with an asshole is what he has to do to repay them, he would try.

“Okay, I’ll try not to avoid Oikawa Tooru” he finally says sighing.

Sakusa can’t even with Atsumu, because the setter is _literally_ crying because they were too cool. Kuroo thumbs up Ushijima, and the tall man goes towards Iwaizumi with a puzzled expression. He doesn’t know what is happening until he can feel Ushijima's arms around his back. Kuroo and Atsumu scream, and Sakusa takes his phone because “ _Tendou-san will cry and be even gayer_ ”.

It’s a good moment, they end up not calling Bokuto for help, and the rest of the night is about how much Atsumu likes Hinata’s hair, or how much Atsumu likes Hinata in general ( _a whole lot apparently_ ). The hug picture goes straight into Kuroo’s Instagram exploding the internet. Iwaizumi has good friends, and he’s glad.

\---

Iwaizumi sees Bokuto a few days after the boys' night, and they end up hanging out at his university’s main campus. Chuo is different from Waseda, but the building is nicer. In fact, the cafeteria has much more light, and their café is open 24/7, also the coffee is better. Even from different universities, they are taking a similar course about global theater, and Bokuto is lost.

“Why did you think this was fun?” he asks, while the rival wing spiker sighs exhausted.

“I didn’t! My advisor just gave it to me because I have to take lit classes! He said that it was also a performing class so…” that seems more obvious actually, but yet again here he is editing his friend’s essay. The fact that it’s all over the place is not even the worst thing. Bokuto doesn’t even spell their names correctly.

“Did you even read the _Doctor Faustus_ even once? In Japanese?” but the conflicted eyes of his friend are obvious enough to roll his own. He doesn’t mind helping Bokuto, it actually gives him things to occupy his mind. Writing so much about his synopsis is making his brain to scream, so a change of pace is actually what’s needed.

“Dude, you know I love you, thank you again” but he doesn’t need to thank him, really. They study together a lot. Despite being rivals in court, Bokuto is easy to hang out with. He likes him especially because he always blurts out the truth. Akaashi doesn’t like it when he’s loud, but Iwaizumi actually does. When he blabbers and talks loudly, and makes noise while he moves, this is when Bokuto is truly him. He appreciates his spontaneity. Kuroo is visibly jealous by that, but Hajime doesn’t care about Kuroo.

They’re seated on a table in the middle of the cafeteria, Bokuto’s legs are stretched on Hajime’s lap, and many people have winked at them. A girl, which Hajime assumed to be Bokuto’s friend, has even complimented Bokuto for ‘ _tapping that_ ’. Iwaizumi feels like a trophy husband, and Bokuto never denies it. It’s been forty minutes of these little acts before Akaashi comes to their table with another tall guy.

“Hey”, unlike Bokuto, Akaashi is not a very talkative guy, but every time he speaks is to insult the wing spiker. He’s not mean per se, he actually sounds more like Ushijima to some extent, but Hajime is sure that Akaashi doesn’t give a shit about life and just says whatever is on his mind.

“Iwaizumi-san, are you still trying to put some sense in Bokuto-san’s words’ vomit?” the guy next to Akaashi laughs, and Hajime grins.

“How can you insult your vice-captain’s intelligence, Akaashi!” before he can do anything, Akaashi moves and Bokuto falls on the floor. It causes more people to move their attention to them and more laughter.

“You’re Iwaizumi, right?” the tall guy moves next to Hajime while Bokuto yells to Akaashi, and the latter is probably texting Kuroo to join them so he can be in peace. Hajime nods, he doesn’t know how he knows his name, but it’s fine. He doesn’t seem a bad guy.

“Matsukawa, Bokuto-san never shuts up about you” and that answers to the question in his head. Hajime chuckles, _of course_ , Bokuto would.

“Yeah, he’s cool. He’s better than many guys I know” Matsukawa laughs, and agrees. At the beginning of the semester, Kuroo invited tons of people with alcohol at their house, and it sort of happened that he created a list of who he liked best in front of everyone. Sakusa was happy to be fifth, and Bokuto beamed at being third. Kuroo was offended because he put him seventh, and Tendou said he had very good taste putting Ushijima first.

“Are you guys dating or something?” truth to be said, that is a legit question. Bokuto literally spreads himself onto him, without shame. He never denies when he’s in their school and people think Iwaizumi is his boyfriend, and they promised each other to get married if they don’t find someone at the age of thirty. So he’s not weird out by the question.

“No, no, we’re just really close” he answers with a smile, which he hopes can satisfy Matsukawa. Said guy hums in response, and then moves his attention to Akaashi, who’s getting coffee with Bokuto.

“He really likes Bokuto-san, just for you to know” Iwaizumi stares, not because of something in particular, but he doesn’t understand where this new guy is going. Iwaizumi is not really close buddy with Akaashi at all, so maybe that’s a bit too personal for his knowledge. But okay, Akaashi likes Bokuto, which seems very unlikely but possible, _but who cares_?

“And you’re telling me this because…?” he really _doesn’t_ get it. Bokuto is one of his closest friends, Hajime will not change how to act around him because of this.

“Nothing, Akaashi really thinks Bokuto-san likes you, that’s all” Hajime doesn’t answer immediately to this, finally understanding the problem. He really doesn’t see Bokuto as more than a friend, even if he wanted too. He’s good looking, nothing to argue, but he’s too childish for his tastes.

With tight lips, Iwaizumi goes back to read his friend’s essay. If he has to be honest, thinking of someone else after Sawako is difficult. Even after everything, he’s _still_ in love with her. No matter how much he denies it. Some nights, when he’s by himself, he still wishes to receive one of her texts, with tons of winking emojis and Spongebob memes. He still asks himself if she’s doing alright in Brazil. If her new team is good, if she’s captain again, and if she’s eating alright. He wonders if she still goes dancing on Thursday nights and if there is someone else who massages her shoulder when she’s stressed. Brazil is 12 hours behind, and when he lies in bed and it’s 3 am, Sawako is still living the 3 pm of the day before. She’s always been afraid of the future, and he wonders if living in past looks good on her.

Matsukawa stares at him, maybe he wants an answer, but Hajime can’t give him one. He doesn’t like Bokuto. That’s for sure. And even more important, he doesn’t want to be involved in any drama. He loves Bokuto as a friend, he’s part of his daily life, and he likes his life as it is now. He can function by himself, and that’s what it’s best.

“ ‘Zumiii!! Save meeee!” Bokuto yells. Akaashi is trying to kick him, and he chuckles.

“I really don’t like Bokuto that way” he answers finally not looking at his face. Matsukawa doesn’t say anything else on the matter. Akaashi is bringing him a cup of coffee, and Hajime smiles at him. He really likes Akaashi too, he doesn’t really want to argue for something like this. 

Bokuto sits again next to Hajime, putting his long legs yet again on him. He tries to see something in Akaashi’s expression, but he doesn’t see anything. Their afternoon goes like this until Iwazumi finishes to edit Bokuto’s essay, and like any other study day he ends up drinking five coffees in one afternoon. After the weird conversation about Bokuto’s feelings, Matsukawa is actually a really nice guy. They share the same love for _I’m not a Robot_ , and they both have a crush on Park Seo-Joon and Park Min-Young. It’s actually a very nice and chill afternoon until he appears.

“Are you befriending the enemy, Mattsun?” Oikawa Tooru appears again in his closest space, and he wants to punch him. Next to him, Kageyama Tobio is texting.

“Hope you didn’t hit Tobio in your free time, Tooru” Matsukawa answers, and Iwaizumi can see visibly how the neck of the older setter becomes redder than before.

“It never happened!” he says, fists up and acting as he was caught on stealing. Kageyama doesn’t even bother to enter the conversation. He’s a really weird guy. He sits next to Hajime, and at that point, they greet each other. He hangs out with him many times with Hinata, and he’s not that bad. Maybe some communication problems, but nothing super weird.

“How are you Kageyama?” at the question, Tobio answers quietly, telling Hajime about his latest midterm, and how much he’s tired from practice. Weirdly enough, he doesn’t mention Hinata, but Hajime doesn’t want to pry. With the recent development of Atsumu’s crush on the short guy, he doesn’t really know where he stands.

“Kou-chan, do you know that our beloved kohai has a _date_ tonight?” without thinking, Bokuto kicks his knees on Iwaizumi’s stomach, Kageyama stops speaking and Akaashi raises an eyebrow. The only one who is not surprised is Matsukawa, who apparently knew before of this date and knew that Oikawa would have said something about it.

“A _date_?!” Bokuto is visibly happy “With whom?! Is she pretty? Is he pretty? Why didn’t I know about this?” his voice is quick, and his energy can be felt by anyone around.

“Bokuto-san, _stop_ ” but Akaashi is visibly ignored. Bokuto takes Kageyama’s hand and moves Hajime to put him next to him. Matsukawa grins, says that he’s going to check on someone called Makki and gives his goodbyes to the group. Akaashi tries to protect Tobio from Bokuto, and then Oikawa sits next to Hajime.

“So, what brings you to Chuo _, Iwa-chan_?” Hajime moves his attention from his friend to face Oikawa’s grin. Is he for real? Maybe he wants to get punched for real. He’s taking too much time to answer because Oikawa laughs.

“Did you really just called me _Iwa-chan_? Do you want to die?”

“My, my… what a brute! I’ve just never seen you around here” he continues. Hajime decides to ignore him. He really puts all of his will, and listens to Ushijima’s voice in his head. He has to do it for them. He has to try, _at least_.

“I was helping Bokuto” he ends up saying “I can’t really say no to him” which is a fair answer. Oikawa stares at him like he did last time at the coffee shop, and like he did also at the party while talking with Sanada. His eyes make him uncomfortable like he’s dissecting him part to part in his head.

However, instead of talking with Oikawa Tooru, Hajime is really curios about what is going on with Kageyama Tobio. Is he breaking Hinata’s heart? Was it a lie all along? Is he straight? Too many questions are in his head, he feels like exploding. “ _Iwa-chan_ ” he says though forcing himself to drag Iwaizumi’s attention.

“ _What_ ” he doesn’t realize he’s yelling until he feels a hand on his shoulder. It’s not Oikawa’s but Bokuto.

“Are you okay man?” but instead of looking at him, Hajime makes the mistake in looking to Akaashi. The boy freezes at that contact, staring Bokuto’s hand still on Iwaizumi’s shoulder. _He looks hurt_ , it’s the first thing Iwaizumi thinks. He feels sick all of a sudden. Bokuto’s presence is now heavy next to him, his mouth is dry and he thinks he can’t breathe. Akaashi’s glacial eyes are colder than usual. But the moment is quick because Oikawa tugs him arm in arm and moves Iwaizumi’s body next to him.

“I want to show Iwa-chan the gym!” when he speaks, Oikawa sing-songs. The thing is that Iwaizumi is not really annoyed by that. He thought he would be, but he is not.

“Wait, Tooru, since when you and ‘Zumi are friends?!” _in fact, we are not_ Iwaizumi wants to answer, but Akaashi’s eyes are still pierced in his mind. Oikawa must have noticed, it would be very insulting to his intelligence as a setter if he didn’t, so he doesn’t answer but grins at them.

“Kou-chan, Kei-chan I’ll see you around, okay? Tobio-chan have fun tonight!” and like that, Hajime doesn’t even have time to grab his stuff because the taller guy is literally moving him by force. They walk with interlinked arms until they’re outside the cafeteria, and the wind makes him shiver. It’s cold, and he really needs to go back inside to grab his jacket, but Bokuto and Akaashi must be still there, and he can’t go now.

“Wait here for a sec” Iwaizumi doesn’t even have time to ask where he’s going that Oikawa runs back into the building. Hajime doesn’t know why he feels so weird out about this thing. He’s not even interested in Bokuto, at least romantically. Why does he have to freak out? It’s Akaashi’s problem, not his, and he’s not going to get involved. Nope.

Oikawa comes back with his bag and jacket, and he just thanks him. To be honest, Oikawa was really nice just a few seconds before. He pulled him out of what could have been a very embarrassing situation for Hajime, but he just doesn’t want to tell him something like that _yet_.

“Here’s your jacket and your bag, Bokuto told me to tell you to answer to his text later” Hajime nods grabbing his things, and thanking him once again. That’s too much kindness all at once from Oikawa Tooru.

“So… I’ll get going” he says. If he knew that the afternoon would have turned out like this, he would have asked Bokuto to go to his apartment, fewer people to bother him and put things in his head. _Ugh_. The whole situation makes him remembers one tweet that Haru sent him a while ago, about University being the best and the most painful thing ever existed.

“But you haven’t seen the gym! You can’t just leave like that, Iwa-chan!” as much as he wants to say no, Hajime’s head is melting. He doesn’t want to go home and be annoyed by Kuroo and Sakusa, but he doesn’t want to wander in the streets. He needs a distraction, and the guy saved him just minutes ago, so that couldn’t be that bad.

“I’ve seen it, we had tons of practice matches” he starts “but okay” he says, his face exhausted and with a neutral expression. Probably Oikawa doesn’t expect this answer, because his mouth is slightly open and he seems to be speechless. With a sigh and adjusting his bag, Iwaizumi doesn’t wait for him, and he starts heading towards the gym. In his mind, the promise he made to Ushijima is being fulfilled and maybe he can avoid the setter for a bit after that.

Oikawa catches up in a few seconds, walking next to him, with his hands in the pockets of his jacket. He’s wearing glasses like last time, so maybe he doesn’t wear them just to look cool. They stay silent until in front of the gym, and then the setter opens the door for him. The basketball team is practicing, so they go to the benches and watch their practice.

“Do you like basket?”

“One of my brothers play” Hajime answers thinking of Hayato, he snorts remembering how pissed he was when he chose volleyball instead “but I prefer watching baseball.” Oikawa grins, and he chuckles a little bit too.

“I see, that’s why Tetsu tried to set you up with Shu-chan?” Hajime shrugs his shoulders, probably yes, or probably it’s just that Kuroo wants him to date a hot guy. He doesn’t really answer him and keeps on watching at the guys practicing.

“Is Kageyama really going on a date?” Iwaizumi hopes that Oikawa was just messing with them. Even if that would be a great chance for Atsumu to try harder with his crush, he doesn’t want to deal with a broken-hearted Hinata. The little guy is too precious to suffer like this.

“Do you need material for your story?” Oikawa grins, his long legs are stretched ahead while he puts his phone on the seat next to him. Hajime rolls his eyes and bit his lip.

“I’m gonna change their names and put other stuff. I’m not really writing about them” he doesn’t know why he’s justifying himself to the other boy, but that doesn’t change Oikawa’s expression.

“You should tell them when you finish it, your writing is good” the compliment is surprising. Hajime is not really the type to make others read his unfinished works unless he’s stuck on something. He doesn’t thank the guy next to him, but he grunts slightly embarrassed.

“He is” Oikawa changes his position so he can face Hajime better, “a girl asked him out, and he said yes” Iwaizumi frowns. He was sure that even a little Kageyama would reciprocate his teammate feelings, but maybe he got too much excited.

“I guess I’m happy for him” not really, but he doesn’t want to let Oikawa know that.

“I’m not, the guy is an idiot, and he thinks that Chibi-chan doesn’t like him back” if it’s true, that’s rubbish. Every person on this planet who saw Hinata and Kageyama interact would say that the two are already a thing.

“Bullshit”

“Tobio-chan is dense like that sometimes” Oikawa sing-songs, and Hajime grins slightly. Somehow, Kageyama is very similar to Ushijima with friendship and socializing, something that made easier for him to try to connect with the younger guy “but maybe it’s for the best, usually when you like someone you try your best to make it happen” the words burn hot into Hajime’s skin. _He wants to laugh_.

“Sometimes trying your best is still not enough” it’s oversharing, especially with a guy he doesn’t even tolerate, to begin with, but maybe Hajime is too tired to care. Though, surprising him again, Oikawa doesn’t pry. He hums at Hajime and his eyes move again towards two players who are now arguing on court.

“But like, now it’s time for Tsumu-chan to shine with Sho-chan, right?” Oikawa grins, he’s about to ask how does he know, but then he remembers that he read what he was writing at the cafè.

“Don’t tell anyone, I think Atsumu is still figuring out himself”

“Why? Are you going to punish me if I do, Iwa-chan?” Hajime thinks of what would be the right thing to do for the greater good, and he chooses just to ignore him. Oikawa winks at him, which literally gives him the chills.

“You’re disgusting”

“And you’re mean” but he doesn’t seem bothered by Hajime’s comment “but I swear, I’m not going to tell anything to anyone. You’ll learn that I’m very good at keeping secrets” Iwaizumi doesn’t really believe that, but he can’t really do anything other than trusting him for the moment.

“Tell me, Iwa-chan, when did you start playing volleyball anyway?” and like that the conversation shifts. They don’t talk about Hinata and Kageyama for the rest of the night.

“When I was six or seven, I don’t really know. My father used to play and I wanted to try” he simply answers, bringing up memories of many of his father’s friends telling him and his siblings' stories of their youth. It’s something he decided to do to honor his memory, many times his mum asked him if he really wanted to, but he actually enjoys playing. He met cool people through it, so not a complete waste of time.

Talking with Oikawa is weirdly easy. He’s still an asshole because while he speaks about other people, Hajime notices, he likes to add mean comments about them, but he can see that the majority of the time he doesn’t really mean it. The basketball team keeps practicing, while the two of them talk about their team and their mutual friends. Apparently the volleyball high schools' circle in the Miyagi prefecture is pretty tight, and because Hinata and Kageyama’s team were very close with many schools in Tokyo, Oikawa ended up knowing everybody before university.

“I never went to Nationals with my school though, Ushiwaka-chan and Tobio-chan had to be annoying like that” there is jealousy in his voice, and maybe a little hate when he talks about Wakatoshi. Hajime doesn’t like it, especially because even if they are rivals there is no reason to be like this.

“I never went to Nationals too, but I don’t randomly insult my rival just because” Oikawa laughs in a mean way, but doesn’t really answer to that. It’s a shame. Oikawa has everything on him to be a good guy, but he must really like to hide behind this mean façade.

“Iwa-chan, be careful, nice guys are the first ones who suffer of broken hearts” it’s a joke. A very mean and bad joke. It doesn’t mean anything for Oikawa, but again, Hajime feels it. He doesn’t know how Oikawa can do that, but he has always the worst thing to say to him. The setter must have noticed the change, but Hajime doesn’t want to be affected as much. He slightly slaps the back of the other guy and grunts.

“Has anyone ever told you your personality sucks?”

“You’re not the first, and you’re not going to be the last, Iwa-chan” his grin goes wider, but Iwaizumi leaves him be. It’s a battle lost from the start. “But anyway, tell me about you” Iwaizumi raises one eyebrow “do you have other hobbies other than volleyball, writing about your underclassmen, and doing Bokuto’s assignments?”

“I don’t do Bokuto’s essays, I just help him edit!”

“And we all ask ourselves why since he writes like shit, are you in love with him or something?” Oikawa isn’t as good as hitting spikes as much as he’s good on hitting nerves. Hajime doesn’t know if he’s doing it on purpose at being a manipulative little shit, or if he just blabbers out everything in his head without thinking. He’s seventy-five percent sure it’s the first one.

“What do you want to know about me? It’s not like I’m a _superstar_ like you” the setter must be pleased by the comment because he smiles like Kuroo when he whispers things in Sawamura’s ears. It’s cringy.

“C’mon Iwa-chan, you’re not a superstar, but you don’t seem bad yourself” Oikawa winks at Hajime again, and the wing spiker naturally rolls his eyes at that. He almost doesn’t want to answer him anymore, but Oikawa starts to pout, and he really wants him to stop.

“I like romantic dramas, but not the western ones, they’re shit” he starts, the setter seems amused by his answer, but he doesn’t stop him “I really want to write one for a tv station one day”

“You should send around the one about Chibi-chan and Tobio-chan!” Hajime can feel the excitement from the other guys like he just said the smartest idea ever.

“No shit. I want to finish it first and then edit, so I can compress it in a sixteen-episode format.”

“Why sixteen? Can’t it be twenty? They may at least need forty actually or like four seasons…”

“Because dramas are always one season long, it’s like a formula” Oikawa snorts at that “don’t tell me you’re one of those people obsessed with that things Americans watch…?” but the setter’s face stretches in an annoyed face.

“Well, excuse me, _sir_. I’m not really a fan of television or shows in general, but I have to say that English music is actually better tha-”

“Better? You just say that to look cool, do you even understand the lyrics?”

“My English is perfect Iwa-chan, it’s people like you-”

“No, it’s people like you who just talk shi-”

“Why would I list-”

“Just, tel-” while bickering, the volume of their voices raise too. It’s not until one of the basket ball almost hits Hajime’s face that they quickly shift to face the court.

“GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE GYM” the basketball coach has the veins on his neck popped out, and it’s like he’s going to kill them just with a glance. Both guys grab their stuff in less than a second and run out of the gym immediately. Hajime checks his phone, and it’s little past nine-thirty, he’s been in Chuo almost all day. Oikawa looks at him, and he starts laughing. Not the usual grin, a real laugh, bending slightly on his knees and holding his stomach. Iwaizumi laughs too, not as much as the setter, but clearly amused by what just happened.

“That was fun, Iwa-chan” and the worst part is that Hajime cannot really argue with it. It was, _indeed_ , fun. Even if the guy in front of him has clearly one of the worst personality ever, Hajime enjoyed this brief encounter too much for his tastes.

“We should do it again” he adds, right after, standing tall and adjusting his glasses “here, give me your phone number” Oikawa’s hands his phone to Hajime, who takes it and stares.

Is it a good idea? Is barely an hour of small talks able to completely change his opinion of the setter in front of him? Oikawa Tooru is arrogant, pretentious and mean. He carries himself like he’s the king of the universe, and the worst thing is that he keeps on pretending he’s the leading actor of a blockbuster. He’s beautiful the same way that Chiha was, with this aura of superiority that only people like them are able to show. Hajime looks at him, and then at the phone in his hand again.

Is it a good idea? Probably not. It may be one of the things that Hajime will regret in a few months. As a pattern, he doesn’t know how to get away with it.

“Okay” Oikawa must have held his breath while Hajime was deciding whether to give away his phone number or not, because he sighs loudly, and then shows him a wide smile. He types quickly and hands over again the phone to his owner.

“Can I text you whenever I want to?”

“Your choice, but I may not answer” Hajime says raising an eyebrow. Oikawa slightly pouts, but his happiness in getting the number is clear.

“Maybe we can have coffee together, last time didn’t really go as expected” _last time was a disaster_ , Iwaizumi wants to say, but he must have said it out loud because Oikawa is grinning.

“Do you want to-”

“Oikawa-san!” Iwaizumi doesn’t get to know the question the setter was asking, a group of girls starts walking towards them, and Oikawa’s conflicted eyes are burning. “Oikawa-san!” another one says, waving her hands and showing a beautiful smile.

“I have to go anyway” Hajime says “I’ll see you around” Oikawa’s face is twitched, almost like he doesn’t want Iwaizumi to leave, but he doesn’t act or say anything about it.

“Be ready for my emojis!” he says instead, and Hajime laughs while he walks away waving a hand. He checks his phone again, and it’s almost a quarter to ten. He has sixteen messages from Kuroo, ten from Bokuto, four from Hinata, and two from Hana. Iwaizumi almost forgets about the whole Bokuto drama of the afternoon, and his head feels less heavy.

From Chuo to his apartment complex is less than ten minutes with the train. It’s a quiet journey, mostly used answering all of his unread messages. First thing is to make sure that Bokuto doesn’t get a long-distance dejected mood. His sister informs him that she’s going to visit Waseda soon because their library is better, and she needs it for a paper. Both Kuroo and Hinata’s text are similar because they’re both at the apartment and apparently Hinata knows about Kageyama’s date. Out of the train, Sakusa texts him _help_ , and Hajime knows that it’s serious.

The apartment is quiet, another bad sign. Silence equals to catastrophe, especially since Kuroo and Hinata are under the same roof. Iwaizumi is almost afraid of getting in. The lights are off, so he turns them on only to witness the saddest and funniest image ever existed. Hinata is sniffing, probably he has been crying for a while, on Sakusa’s laps. Kuroo is holding the ginger’s hand and he’s crying too, covering his face.

“Thank God” Sakusa exhales, trying to untangle himself, but failing.

“Iwaizumi-san!” Hinata screams and runs towards him crying even louder now and hugging him.

“Hajime!” Kuroo does the exact same thing, and they end up on the floor “This is a tragedy!” with his eyes, Iwaizumi makes eye-contact with Sakusa, but the wing spiker uses this chance to run away and close himself in the bathroom “ _I need three showers now!_ ” he screams slamming the door, and Iwaizumi is left alone with two of the most chaotic people he knows.

“Can someone please explain?” but the two of them are in such an emotional mess that they talk all over each other. They stand up, and Iwaizumi points them to sit on the sofa.

“Bake-yama… date…” one thing is imagining it, another is witnessing it.

“Why are _you_ crying then?” Iwaizumi points at Kuroo with a scowl.

“Because watching Shouyou crying made me sad, I called Sawamura but he was out with Suga” he’s thankful for his mother to have taught him patience, especially for this one. He can’t even put all of his thoughts in order or think of something that can soothe the situation. The doorbell rings, and he grunts frustrated.

“Both of you, stop crying, we can talk about it” at the door, an energetic Bokuto is jumping with two bags full of what it looks like junk food.

“HEY, HEY, HEY! ‘ZUMI I MISSED YOU!”

“We literally were together the whole day, why didn’t you tell me you were coming anyway?” but Bokuto doesn’t answer. Everything is getting more ridiculous by the minute. Hinata is now sniffing on Kuroo’s shoulder, and Bokuto sits next to them handing goodies.

“Bro, I knew you’re the best”

“Bro, I came as soon as I knew it”

“Bro”

“Bro”

Iwaizumi sighs feeling defeated. He closes the door and then approaches the three, sitting in the armchair next to the sofa. He really needs the holiday to come fast.

“Shouyouuuu!! I’m so sorry this happened, but Kageyama is a pain the ass anyway!! There are so much better fishes in the sea!!” but instead of comforting him, Bokuto has the opposite reaction. Hinata’s sniffs are even louder, and Kuroo -who finally pulled himself together- gently slaps him.

“Guys, this is not helping” Iwaizumi, who is now the master in heartbreaks, shoots them a glare “Hinata, it’s only a date, we all know Kageyama, and he’s not exactly very, _ehm_ , charming... yeah let’s say charming” as noticed, Kageyama has the same sensibility of a pole in the North Pole.

“But Bokuto is right, Shouyou,” while he speaks, Kuroo has his mouth full of chips “Kageyama is not the only guy around, you should look around more” Hinata doesn’t seem to like Kuroo’s advice. To be fair, nobody likes Kuroo’s advice, and even if it’s the same thing that he always says to him, Hajime knows better that his friend is only getting in the middle of the Atsumu x Hinata x Kageyama dynamics. _Horrible idea_.

“I think you should wait and see how it goes, and talk with Kageyama” Kuroo glance at him, whispering ‘ _Which sides are you on?_ ’, but he ignores the middle blocker “you don’t have to force yourself into liking someone new, you realized you like Kageyama when? Like two months ago, right?” the short guy nodded, his eyes are shining red, but at least he’s not crying anymore, and he eats his pocky silently “so don’t worry too much, if something or someone is yours, it’ll wait for you”

“IWAIZUMI-SAN!! YOU’RE SO COOL!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!” and even if Kuroo thinks that they’re barely twenty, not fifty years old, Hajime doesn’t care. Bokuto agrees with Hinata that ‘ _Zumi is the coolest always! Let’s do arms wrestling!_ ’ the night turns out to become an arms wrestling competition. Of course the winner is Bokuto, he is indeed in the top five of the strongest spikers in the country.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> i was watching the drama be melodramatic and then this happened


End file.
